COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A month after his surprise win to become South Carolina’s Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Alvin Greene said Monday he was finally making his first public speaking appearance.
Greene told The Associated Press he has been invited by a local branch of the state conference of the NAACP to speak at the group’s monthly meeting Sunday in his hometown of Manning.
“Jobs, education and justice, the campaign for the general election,” Greene said, when asked what he planned to discuss. “That’s what I’m focusing on right now.”
Greene has given a series of awkward, often terse media interviews since June 8, when he won an unexpected victory over former state lawmaker Vic Rawl. Greene will face GOP U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint in the fall.
An unemployed military veteran who lives at home with his ailing father, Greene has called himself “a true American hero” and suggested last week the creation of action figures of his own likeness as a way to create jobs in South Carolina.
Greene had no website until two weeks ago and did not do any campaign fundraising before the primary. On Monday, Greene said he plans to do more campaigning but did not have any other events scheduled.
Greene said the event will be held at Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church.
Officials with the NAACP did not immediately return a message Monday. The day after Greene’s primary night win, the president of the state National Association for the Advancement of Colored People said he had not met Greene or heard of him before the election.
Greene won another victory Friday, when South Carolina’s state police said they would not charge Greene over how he paid his $10,440 U.S. Senate filing fee, despite reporting just over $1,000 in monthly income on court paperwork and being appointed a public defender to represent him on an obscenity charge.
When agents reviewed Greene’s bank accounts, they found recent deposits of military pay and state and federal tax refunds that matched Greene’s story that the 32-year-old candidate, who has been collecting unemployment benefits since he left the military in August, was able to afford the fee because he saved his money and lived frugally.
Police also wanted to look into whether Greene had misrepresented his financial situation in court by accepting the court-appointed attorney to defend him on a felony charge of showing obscene Internet photos to a University of South Carolina student.
Greene said he didn’t ask for a court-appointed attorney or intend to mislead anyone about his financial situation. Police say Greene cooperated with their investigation, and the candidate feels vindicated by the results.
Democratic Party leaders were stunned by Greene’s 18-point primary victory and called for him to withdraw from the race after AP reported his arrest. But Greene, who has not entered a plea or been indicted, has declined to comment on the charge and says he’s staying in the race.
In addition to DeMint, Greene also faces anti-nuclear activist Tom Clements, a Green Party candidate.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
